英字新聞

The Yomiuri Shimbun December 10, 2013
Eda’s split from Your Party may trigger political realignment
みんなの党分裂　「江田新党」は野党再編序章か（12月10日付・読売社説）

Four years and four months after its inception, Your Party has split. This event has the potential of leading to a realignment of opposition parties.
　みんなの党が、結党４年４か月でとうとう分裂した。野党再編への序章となる可能性がある。

Former Secretary General Kenji Eda and 13 other members of the party have submitted letters of resignation to the party and announced plans to establish a new party before the end of the year. The 14 defectors—eight from the House of Representatives and six from the House of Councillors—account for 40 percent of the party’s 35 lawmakers. Mito Kakizawa, an independent in the lower house, will join the planned new party.
　江田憲司前幹事長らが離党届を提出し、年内に新党を結成する方針を表明した。離党するのは１４人の衆参両院議員で、党所属３５人の４割に上る。新党には無所属の柿沢未途衆院議員も加わる。

The primary reason for the split was a feud between party leader Yoshimi Watanabe and Eda over the party’s future course.
　分裂の主因は、路線を巡る渡辺代表と江田氏の確執である。

Watanabe has insisted on cooperating with other parties in one political bloc, while maintaining the independence of Your Party. Eda, on the other hand, does not hesitate to run the risk of dissolving the party to help realign opposition forces. Watanabe scorned Eda’s move as an “antiparty action.”
　渡辺氏は、みんなの党を存続させたまま、他の野党と連携する「政党ブロック」の構想を主張する。野党再編のためなら、解党も辞さないとする江田氏の動きを「反党行為」と攻撃してきた。

Watanabe removed Eda from the post of party secretary general in August and forced Eda’s close follower, Kakizawa, to leave the party later that month.
　８月には、江田氏を幹事長から外し、その後、江田氏の側近である柿沢氏を離党に追い込んだ。

The situation was brought to a head over the party leadership’s handling of the government-proposed legislation on protecting specially designated state secrets.
　特定秘密保護法を巡る対応が、分裂の直接の引き金となった。

Eda vehemently criticized Watanabe’s role in working out an agreement to amend the bill through talks with the Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner, New Komeito, as “wooing the LDP.”
　江田氏は、渡辺氏が主導した自民、公明の与党との法案修正合意について、「自民党へのすり寄り」と厳しく批判している。

Attention will be focused on whether Eda’s action will evolve into interparty tie-ups or a realignment of opposition parties involving the Democratic Party of Japan and Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party).
　今後の焦点は、江田氏の動きが、民主党や日本維新の会を巻き込み、政党の枠を超えた連携や野党再編に発展するかどうかだ。

After submitting his letter of resignation to the party Monday, Eda said at a news conference that political forces should work together to compete with the LDP. This probably means he wants his new party to act as the foundation for future realignment of opposition parties.
　江田氏は離党届提出後の記者会見で、自民党に対抗する政治勢力を結集する必要性を指摘した。「江田新党」も将来の野党再編への布石とする考えなのだろう。

Fighting a behemoth

Given that the current political map is dominated by the LDP, leaving small and weak parties far in its wake, the unity of opposition parties is being put to the test. It is understandable that the opposition parties will try to rally their forces to increase their voice against the behemoth ruling party.
　自民党が突出した「１強多弱」の状況の下、野党の結束が問われている。巨大与党に対抗し、発言力を高めるために、野党が勢力結集を目指すのは理解できる。

But the question remains whether they can agree on political ideals and policies. Ishin no Kai’s acting secretary general, Yorihisa Matsuno, plans to form a parliamentary group with Eda’s new party. This is a realistic option.
　だが、政治理念、政策で一致できるのか。維新の会の松野頼久幹事長代行が、維新と「江田新党」による統一会派結成という緩やかな連携を呼び掛ける意向を示しているのは、現実的と言える。

Ishin no Kai, which was founded before the lower house election in December last year, is not a monolithic party either, as policy differences have emerged between its Osaka-based members, led by party coleader Toru Hashimoto, and a group of lawmakers in Tokyo.
　昨年の衆院選前に結党した維新の会も、橋下共同代表ら大阪の勢力と東京の国会議員団との間で政策の違いが表面化しており、一枚岩ではない。

If a unified parliamentary group can be realized by Eda’s party and Ishin no Kai, it will surpass the DPJ in strength in the lower house to become the second political force after the LDP. As the biggest parliamentary group of the opposition camp, it will have the strongest voice among opposition groups in the Diet.
　統一会派が実現すれば、衆院議席で民主党を上回り、自民党に続く勢力となる。野党第１会派として、国会での発言権は増そう。

Your Party, under Watanabe’s leadership, is expected to increase its cooperation with the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Watanabe will reportedly offer advice to the Abe Cabinet in its reexamination of the constitutional interpretation of the right to collective self-defense.
　一方で、みんなの党の渡辺氏は、安倍政権と政策面での協調姿勢を強めるのではないか。集団的自衛権の憲法解釈見直しについても近く安倍内閣に提言するという。

DPJ President Banri Kaieda cannot sit back and calmly watch the split of Your Party without taking action. Quite a few DPJ members also lean toward a realignment of the opposition parties. Unless something is done to change the status quo, the DPJ’s leadership will see its power further wane.
　みんなの党の分裂劇を静観する構えの民主党の海江田代表も安閑とはしていられまい。党内にも野党再編を志向する議員は少なくない。今のままでは、執行部の求心力が一層弱まる可能性がある。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Dec. 10, 2013)
（2013年12月10日01時45分 読売新聞）